Rosie is a little anxious about her first date with Sean. We all know how important first impressions are when it comes to finding love.

After a few outings at a local coffee shop, her feelings of attraction were obvious. The setting was intimate, soft  music played in the background and the aroma of coffee filled the air. All led to a favorable impression of Sean. She wanted to continue the relationship, seeing many positive traits in Sean.

Did anything about that first coffee shop date contribute to Rosie’s good impression of Sean? A Japanese study suggests that something about that coffee shop date could have contributed to her positive impression of Sean.

The study looked at the impact music had on the impressions formed for opposite sex conversation partners during a first encounter. When music was part of the background of the conversations, participants rated their conversation partners significantly more favorably than those in pairs with no music in the background. The researchers concluded that music may have made the conversationalists more charming!

Based on this study, music could facilitate feelings of interest and attraction during first encounters. Because of the way music stimulates neurochemical systems in the brain, positive impressions can be increased. And character traits such as friendliness and openness were rated higher when music was playing in the background.

So, if you want to make a good first impression, have music playing in the background. It might make the attraction stronger! Music just might be the aphrodisiac of love!

Source: Sumi Shigeno. Effects of background music on young Japanese adults’ impressions of opposite-sex conversation partners Psychology of Music 0305735614561816, first published on December 15, 2014 doi:10.1177/0305735614561816